Hawaii Gourd and Orchid ensemble " what a lovely way to say Aloha ! "

At the Hawaii Gourd Society, we decorate gourds ("Ipu" in Hawai'ian)

in a method that was used in old Hawai'i on the island of Ni'ihau.

Ni'ihau is the smallest of the eight major Hawaiian Islands

and is off the coast of Kaua'i.

This art form was lost to history at the turn of the

20th century as the practitioners died and native vessels

were replaced by western crockery. There were

examples of this art in museums but how they were

decorated was unknown.About fifteen years ago a doctor

from the Big Island, Bruce Ka'imiloa Chrisman,

discovered how it was done. By going through the archives, looking at museum .

The Ni'Hau Method of Gourd Decoration

• We harvest a gourd while the skin is still green and the stem is starting to turn brown.
• Next we draw a design on the gourd with a pen.
• Then the design is outlined with a knife cutting only into the skin, not into the shell.
• Skin is then lifted off the gourd where the design is to remain light colored, the skin left will dye dark.
• A hole is made in the gourd and thick black coffee is added to the interior as a dye. Any water-based dye will work. Hawaiians used tannins derived from tree bark.
• Where the skin was removed, the gourd seals itself and will not dye. Where the skin was left it is still evaporating and the dye will be drawn out and will remain in the shell of the gourd.
• After three weeks the coffe is poured out and most of the soft tissue of the gourd will come out with it.
• The skin that was left on is scraped off, underneath it is the dyed pattern.
• The gourd is then dried, lightly sanded and finished with light oil.
• A sealant is put in the interior to further preserve this work of art.

We invite you join us - We'll keep you apprised of schedules for our regular get-togethers where we trade stories, seeds and show off the results of our work!

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